President Biden’s Public Schedule for Tuesday 04/11/2023:
| 8:00 AM | Out-of-Town Pool Call Time Joint Base Andrews OverhangOut-of-Town Pool |
| 8:30 AM | The President receives the Presidential Daily Briefing The White House Closed Press |
| 9:00 AM | In-Town Pool Call Time The White HouseIn-Town Pool |
| 9:30 AM | The President departs the White House en route to Joint Base Andrews North Grounds In-Town Travel Pool |
| 10:00 AM | The President departs Joint Base Andrews en route to Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom Joint Base Andrews Out-of-Town Pool |
| 12:00 PM Press Gaggle | Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will gaggle aboard Air Force One en route to Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom Joint Base Andrews Out-of-Town Pool |
| 4:20 PM | The President arrives in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom (9:20 PM Local) Belfast International Airport, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom |
YouTube says the audio only press gaggle is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. D.C., time.
The White House Easter EGGucation Roll Tweets:
From Monday…
It’s a 12 second GIF with music featuring a hedge shaped like a Rabbit wearing President Biden’s signature blue tie and aviator sunglasses.
Remarks by President Biden at the 2023 White House Easter Egg Roll (04/10/2023):
Hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend. Easter is a season of joy — a time of rebirth, renewal, faith, hope, and love. A time to remember that in the beauty of spring, the seeds of new opportunity are planted.
And this spring, our future fills — is filled with unlimited possibilities that multiple and grow because of all the good people here and throughout the country.
Ladies and gentlemen, what I see, looking across the South Lawn, is a country made up of possibilities. Anything is possible in America if we remember who we are and we do it together.
White House.gov. 04/10/2023.
Remarks by President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden at the 2023 White House Easter Egg Roll (04/10/2023):
The video snip is 59 seconds long.
Their full remarks:
First Lady Dr. Jill Biden:
Welcome to the Easter Egg Roll.
As your First Lady and as a teacher, I’ve seen again and again: Learning doesn’t only happen in the classroom. There are so many fun opportunities to learn around us every day. And that’s what we — why we wanted to celebrate our Easter Egg Roll.
So we turned the South Lawn into a school community. What brings it to life is all of you — your laughter, your joy, the art you create, and the memories you take home with you. That is what makes this event so special.
So today, we hope you learn, explore, and grow by listening to a story in the Reading Nook, rolling some eggs, playing with circuit boards, or building robots — and, most of all, having fun.
Welcome to your house, the White House. Happy Easter. (Applause.)
Now please welcome my husband, our President, Joe Biden. (Applause.)
White House.gov. 04/10/2023.
President Biden:
Good morning, everyone. I’m Joe Biden, Jill’s husband. (Laughter.) And welcome to the White House, your house. And a special thanks to the Egg Board and the American Egg Farmers, the White House Historical Association, the National Park Service, and all the talented performers for making this day possible.
And thanks to all the children and families for being part of such a special White House tradition. It’s been going on for a long time.
Hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend. Easter is a season of joy — a time of rebirth, renewal, faith, hope, and love. A time to remember that in the beauty of spring, the seeds of new opportunity are planted.
And this spring, our future fills — is filled with unlimited possibilities that multiple and grow because of all the good people here and throughout the country.
Ladies and gentlemen, what I see, looking across the South Lawn, is a country made up of possibilities. Anything is possible in America if we remember who we are and we do it together.
So, have a wonderful, wonderful time here at the People’s House. God bless you all, and may God protect our troops.Happy Easter. (Applause.)
White House.gov. 04/10/2023.
The Louisville, Kentucky Tweet
From Monday…
The New York Times reported this morning that the 25-year-old man who shot and killed five people and wounded eight others also livestreamed the shooting according to officials.
A 25-year-old man shot and killed five colleagues with a rifle on Monday at the downtown bank where he worked, the police said. Eight others were wounded in the attack, two of them critically. The suspect, who officials said was livestreaming the rampage, was killed by the police after exchanging fire with them.
New York Times gifted article via my twitter. 04/11/2023.
The police have also identified four of the victims; as employees of Old National Bank: Joshua Barrick, 40; Thomas Elliott, 63; Juliana Farmer, 45; and James Tutt, 64. The fifth victim, Deana Eckert, 57, also worked there, according to a LinkedIn page; she initially survived the shooting but died on Monday night, the police said. Among the critically wounded was Nickolas Wilt, 26, who had graduated from the police academy on March 31.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear (D) tweeted on Monday:
Later Monday he confirmed the death of the fifth victim:
President Biden’s full statement:
Once again, our nation is in mourning after a senseless act of gun violence. Jill and I are praying for those killed and injured in the tragic shooting in Louisville, and for the survivors who will carry grief and trauma for the rest of their lives. We are grateful to the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department officers who quickly and courageously stepped into the line of fire to save others.
How many more Americans must die before Republicans in Congress will act to protect our communities? It’s long past time that we require safe storage of firearms. Require background checks for all gun sales. Eliminate gun manufacturers’ immunity from liability. We can and must do these things now.
A strong majority of Americans want lawmakers to act on commonsense gun safety reforms. Instead, from Florida to North Carolina to the U.S. House of Representatives, we’ve watched Republican officials double down on dangerous bills that make our schools, places of worship, and communities less safe. It’s unconscionable, it’s reckless, and too many Americans are paying with their lives.
White House.gov. 04/10/2023.
The Ireland Tweet
From Monday…
AP News said on 04/04/2023:
It has been 25 years since the striking of the Good Friday Agreement, the landmark peace accord that ended three decades of violence in Northern Ireland, a period known as “the Troubles.”
The anniversary is being marked with celebration that peace has endured, but concern about entrenched divisions and political instability. And the specter of violence has not wholly disappeared – last month U.K. intelligence services raised the terrorism threat level for Northern Ireland from “substantial” to “severe.”
[snip-The Troubles]
The situation deteriorated into a conflict involving Irish republican militants, loyalist paramilitaries and U.K. troops. Bombings and shootings killed some 3,600 people, mostly in Northern Ireland, though republicans also set off bombs in mainland Britain.
[snip-What Led to The Agreement]
The Irish Republican Army called a cease-fire in 1994, allowing its allied party, Sinn Fein, to join other nationalist and unionist parties in peace talks co-sponsored by the British and Irish governments. The United States played a key role — former Sen. George Mitchell chaired the talks, spending 22 months in Belfast overseeing the delicate multi-party negotiations.
The talks came close to collapse several times. But after a marathon weeklong negotiating session that stretched long past deadline, agreement was reached on April 10, 1998 — Good Friday. British Prime Minister Tony Blair hailed the agreement, saying: “Today I hope that the burden of history can at long last start to be lifted from our shoulders.”
The following month, the agreement was ratified by voters in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
[snip-The Agreement]
The agreement gave formal recognition to Northern Ireland’s multiple identities, allowing residents to identify as British, Irish or both.
It ended direct U.K. rule and set up a Northern Ireland legislature and government with power shared between unionist and nationalist parties. The agreement affirmed Northern Ireland as part of the U.K. but set out that it could in future unite with Ireland if a majority in both the north and the republic supported the move.
After some hiccups, militant groups agreed to disarm, and paramilitary prisoners jailed for taking part of the violence were freed — something that remains a sore point with victims and bereaved families.
The British military withdrew and dismantled its bases and border checkpoints. People and goods could flow freely across the all-but-invisible border between Northern Ireland and the republic.
AP News. 04/04/2023.
President Biden offered remarks on Tuesday prior to departing the White House for Ireland:
Q Mr. President, have you spoken to Evan Gershkovich’s family?
White House.gov. 04/11/2023.
THE PRESIDENT: I tried to get them yesterday. We missed calls. I called them yesterday, and we missed calls. I’m going to try them from the plane.
Q Try them from the plane?
THE PRESIDENT: Yeah. Because —
Q That’s Evan Gershkovich’s family?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes.
Q Anything you can say about his case?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, you know, we’re making it real clear that it’s totally illegal what’s happening, and we declared it so. It changes the dynamic.
Q What’s your top priority on this trip, sir?
THE PRESIDENT: Make sure the Irish accords and the Windsor agreement stay in place, to keep the peace. That’s the — that’s the main thing. And it’s look like we’re going to — keep your fingers crossed.
Q Is your family coming with you on the trip?
THE PRESIDENT: Just two of my family members who hadn’t been there before.
Q And on the abortion pill ruling, what are your thoughts?
THE PRESIDENT: My thoughts are: It’s completely out of bounds what the judge did.
Thank you.
The Economy Tweet
From Tuesday…
His budget can be found here.
American Rescue Plan.
Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
Inflation Reduction Act.
CHIPS and Science Act.
The Random Loner Tweet
From Tuesday…
This is an Open Thread.
